10-K: Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)
Published on February 17, 2022
UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM
For the fiscal year ended
For the transition period from to
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
(Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc.) |
(Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc.) |
(Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc.) |
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(Commission file number) |
(IRS Employer Identification No.) |
(Address of principal executive offices)
(
(Telephone number, including area code)
Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Registrant |
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Title of Each Class |
Trading Symbol (s) |
Name of Exchange on |
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Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc. |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
None.
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.
Yes ◻ |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding twelve months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports) and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one:)
Accelerated filer ◻ |
Non-accelerated filer ◻ |
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Smaller reporting company ◻ |
Emerging growth company ◻ |
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act.
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Yes
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Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.
Yes
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).
Yes |
The aggregate market value of the common stock Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc. held by non-affiliates was $
As of February 11, 2022, there were
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Proxy Statement for the registrant’s 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission no later than 120 days after December 31, 2021, is incorporated by reference in Part III herein.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
2
Forward-Looking Statements
Unless otherwise indicated or except where the context otherwise requires, the terms “we,” “us” and “our” and other similar terms in this Annual Report on Form 10-K refer to Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries.
The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and notes thereto appearing elsewhere in this document. This document contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These statements relate to our expectations, beliefs, intentions, plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events, performance and underlying assumptions and other statements other than statements of historical facts. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of forward-looking terminology including, but not limited to, terms such as “may,” “will,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “believes,” “intends,” “should” or comparable terms or the negative thereof. These statements are based on information available on the date of this filing and only speak as to the date hereof and no obligation to update such forward-looking statements should be assumed.
Our actual results may differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of a variety of factors, including, among other things:
| (1) | those items discussed under “Risk Factors” in Part I, Item 1A to our Annual Report on Form 10-K; |
| (2) | uncertainties relating to the business operations of the operators of our assets, including those relating to reimbursement by third-party payors, regulatory matters and occupancy levels; |
| (3) | the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business and the business of our operators, including without limitation, the extent and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, increased costs, staffing shortages and decreased occupancy levels experienced by operators of skilled nursing facilities (“SNFs”) and assisted living facilities (“ALFs”) in connection therewith, the ability of operators to comply with infection control and vaccine protocols, the long-term impact of vaccination on facility infection rates, and the extent to which continued government support may be available to operators to offset such costs and the conditions related thereto; |
| (4) | the ability of our operators in bankruptcy to reject unexpired lease obligations, modify the terms of our mortgages and impede the ability to collect unpaid rent or interest during the pendency of a bankruptcy proceeding and retain security deposits for the debtor’s obligations, and other costs and uncertainties associated with operator bankruptcies; |
| (5) | our ability to re-lease, otherwise transition, or sell underperforming assets or assets held for sale on a timely basis and on terms that allow us to realize the carrying value of these assets; |
| (6) | the availability and cost of capital to us; |
| (7) | changes in our credit ratings and the ratings of our debt securities; |
| (8) | competition in the financing of healthcare facilities; |
| (9) | competition in the long-term healthcare industry and shifts in the perception of various types of long-term care facilities, including SNFs and ALFs; |
| (10) | additional regulatory and other changes in the healthcare sector; |
| (11) | changes in the financial position of our operators; |
| (12) | the effect of economic and market conditions generally and, particularly, in the healthcare industry; |
| (13) | changes in interest rates; |
| (14) | the timing, amount and yield of any additional investments; |
| (15) | changes in tax laws and regulations affecting real estate investment trusts (“REITs”); |
| (16) | the potential impact of changes in the SNF and ALF markets or local real estate conditions on our ability to dispose of assets held for sale for the anticipated proceeds or on a timely basis, or to redeploy the proceeds therefrom on favorable terms; |
| (17) | our ability to maintain our status as a REIT; and |
| (18) | the effect of other factors affecting our business or the businesses of our operators that are beyond our or their control, including natural disasters, other health crises or pandemics and governmental action; particularly in the healthcare industry. |
3
PART I
Item 1 – Business
Overview
Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc. (“Parent”) is a Maryland corporation that, together with its consolidated subsidiaries (collectively, “Omega” or “Company”) has elected to be taxed as a REIT for federal income tax purposes. Omega is structured as an umbrella partnership REIT (“UPREIT”) under which all of Omega's assets are owned directly or indirectly by, and all of Omega's operations are conducted directly or indirectly through, its operating partnership subsidiary, OHI Healthcare Properties Limited Partnership (collectively with subsidiaries, “Omega OP”). As of December 31, 2021, Parent owned approximately 97% of the issued and outstanding units of partnership interest in Omega OP (“Omega OP Units”), and other investors owned approximately 3% of the outstanding Omega OP Units. Omega became a publicly traded company listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1992.
Omega has one reportable segment consisting of investments in healthcare-related real estate properties located in the United States (“U.S.”) and the United Kingdom (“U.K.”). Our core business is to provide financing and capital to the long-term healthcare industry with a particular focus on skilled nursing facilities (“SNFs”), assisted living facilities (“ALFs”), and to a lesser extent, independent living facilities (“ILFs”), rehabilitation and acute care facilities (“specialty facilities”) and medical office buildings (“MOBs”). Our core portfolio consists of our long-term leases and mortgage loans with healthcare operating companies and affiliates (collectively, our “operators”). All of our leases to our operators are “triple-net” leases, which require the operators to pay all property-related expenses. All of our mortgages are secured by first mortgage liens on the underlying real estate and personal property of the operators. In addition to our core investments, we selectively make loans to operators for working capital and capital expenditures. These loans, which may be either unsecured or secured by the collateral of the borrower, are classified as other investments. From time to time, we also acquire equity interests in joint ventures or entities that support the long-term healthcare industry and our operators.
Our goal is to provide strong returns to our investors, while serving as the preferred capital partner to our operators so they can concentrate on providing a high level of care for their resident-patients.
Portfolio and Investments
As of December 31, 2021, our portfolio of real estate investments included 960 healthcare facilities located in 42 states and the U.K. and operated by 63 third-party operators and was made up of the following:
| ● | real estate assets that include 685 SNFs, 133 ALFs, 20 ILFs, 16 specialty facilities and two MOBs; |
| ● | fixed rate mortgages on 59 SNFs, two ALFs and two specialty facilities; and |
| ● | 41 facilities held for sale. |
Included below is a summary of our total investment assets, excluding accumulated depreciation, as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 (dollars in thousands):
As of December 31, |
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2021 |
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2020 |
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Real estate assets: |
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Buildings and improvements |
$ |
7,448,126 |
$ |
7,269,596 |
||
Land |
|
916,328 |
|
883,765 |
||
Furniture and equipment |
|
511,271 |
|
518,664 |
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Construction in progress |
|
74,062 |
|
30,129 |
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Total real estate assets |
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8,949,787 |
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8,702,154 |
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Investments in direct financing leases - net |
|
10,873 |
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10,764 |
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Mortgage notes receivable - net |
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835,086 |
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885,313 |
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Assets held for sale |
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261,151 |
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81,452 |
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Total real estate investments |
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10,056,897 |
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9,679,683 |
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Other investments - net |
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469,884 |
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467,442 |
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Investments in unconsolidated joint ventures |
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194,687 |
|
200,638 |
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Total investments |
$ |
10,721,468 |
$ |
10,347,763 |
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4
Revenues
The following table summarizes our revenues by investment category for 2021, 2020 and 2019 (dollars in thousands):
Year Ended December 31, |
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2021 |
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2020 |
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2019 |
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Real estate related income: |
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Rental income |
$ |
923,677 |
$ |
753,427 |
$ |
804,076 |
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Income from direct financing leases |
|
1,029 |
|
1,033 |
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1,036 |
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Mortgage interest income |
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91,661 |
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89,422 |
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76,542 |
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Total real estate related revenues |
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1,016,367 |
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843,882 |
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881,654 |
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Other investment income |
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44,721 |
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44,864 |
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43,400 |
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Miscellaneous income |
|
1,721 |
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3,635 |
|
3,776 |
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Total revenues |
$ |
1,062,809 |
$ |
892,381 |
$ |
928,830 |
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Investment Strategy
We maintain a portfolio of long-term healthcare facilities and mortgages on healthcare facilities located in the U.S. and the U.K. Our investments are generally geographically diverse and operated by a diverse group of established, middle-market healthcare operators that we believe meet our standards for quality and experience of management and creditworthiness. Our criteria for evaluating potential investments includes but is not limited to:
● the quality and experience of management and the creditworthiness of the operator of the facility;
● the facility’s historical and forecasted cash flow and its ability to meet operational needs, capital expenditure requirements and lease or debt service obligations;
● the construction quality, condition and design of the facility and its environmental impact;
● the location of the facility;
● the tax, growth, regulatory and reimbursement environment of the applicable jurisdiction;
● the occupancy rate for the facility and demand for similar healthcare facilities in the same or nearby communities; and
● the payor mix of private, Medicare and Medicaid patients at the facility.
As healthcare delivery continues to evolve, we continuously evaluate potential investments, as well as our assets, operators and markets to position our portfolio for long-term success. Our strategy includes applying data analytics to our investment underwriting and asset management, as well as selling or transitioning assets that do not meet our portfolio criteria.
We prefer to invest in fee simple ownership of properties. Due to regulatory, tax or other considerations, we may pursue alternative investment structures, such as mortgages and investments in joint ventures. While the market for long-term care real estate acquisitions in the U.S. remained competitive in 2021, we continued to seek and identify selective investments that are accretive to our portfolio. In addition to our U.S.-based investments, we expect to continue to pursue investments in alternative jurisdictions such as the U.K. As part of our continuous evaluation of our portfolio and in connection with certain operator workout transactions, we expect to continue to opportunistically sell assets, or portfolios of assets, from time to time. In addition, as the long-term care industry evolves and adapts to new protocols, we have made and may continue to make select ancillary investments in companies that enhance the technology and infrastructure of long-term care providers and our operators.
The following summarizes our primary investment structures. The average annualized yields described below reflect obligations under existing contractual arrangements. However, due to the nature of the long-term care industry, we cannot assure that the operators of our facilities will meet their payment obligations in full or when due. Therefore, the annualized yields as of December 31, 2021, set forth below, are not necessarily indicative of future yields, which may be lower.
We seek to obtain (i) contractual rent escalations under long-term, non-cancelable, “triple-net” leases and (ii) fixed-rate mortgage loans. We also typically seek to obtain substantial liquidity deposits, covenants regarding minimum working capital and net worth, liens on accounts receivable and other operating assets, and various provisions for cross-default, cross-collateralization and corporate and/or personal guarantees, when appropriate.
5
Triple-Net Operating Leases
Our triple-net operating leases typically range from 5 to 15 years, plus renewal options and require the operator to pay rent and all additional charges incurred in the operation of the leased facility. Our leases generally provide for minimum annual rents that are subject to annual escalators. Leases with fixed annual rental escalators are generally recognized on a straight-line basis over the initial lease period, subject to a collectibility assessment. At December 31, 2021, our average annualized yield from operating leases was approximately 9.8%. At December 31, 2021, approximately 94% of our operating leases have initial lease terms expiring after 2026. The majority of our leased real estate properties are leased under provisions of master lease agreements that govern more than one facility and to a lesser extent we lease facilities under single facility leases. Under our master leases, our operators are required to make one monthly payment that represents rent on all the properties that are subject to the master lease.
Some of our leases provide our operators with advances for the construction of facilities or capital expenditures for strategic facility enhancements. Typically, these advances require the operator to pay a fixed percentage of the advances funded as capital expenditure rent under the lease. Construction and upgrades made under these lease clauses are capitalized within our real estate assets. Because we direct a significant amount of our capital back into existing assets, we believe this sets the stage for our long-term strategic success.
Fixed-Rate Mortgages
Our mortgages typically have a fixed interest rate for the mortgage term and are secured by first mortgage liens on the underlying real estate and personal property of the mortgagor. We enter into mortgages for existing facilities and for the construction of facilities. At December 31, 2021, our average annualized yield on these investments was approximately 10.5%. At December 31, 2021, approximately 89% of our mortgages have primary terms that expire after 2026.
The table set forth in Item 2 – Properties contains information regarding our properties and investments as of December 31, 2021.
Borrowing Policies
We generally attempt to match the maturity of our indebtedness with the maturity of our investment assets and employ long-term, fixed-rate debt to the extent practicable in view of market conditions in existence from time to time.
We may use the proceeds of new indebtedness to finance our investments in additional healthcare facilities. In addition, we may invest in properties subject to existing loans, secured by mortgages, deeds of trust or similar liens on properties.
Policies With Respect To Certain Activities
With respect to our capital requirements, we typically rely on equity offerings, debt financing and retention of cash flow (subject to provisions in the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”) concerning taxability of undistributed REIT taxable income), or a combination of these methods. Our financing alternatives include bank borrowings, publicly or privately placed debt instruments, purchase money obligations to the sellers of assets or securitizations, any of which may be issued as secured or unsecured indebtedness. We have the authority to issue our common stock or other equity or debt securities in exchange for property and to repurchase or otherwise reacquire our securities. Subject to the percentage of ownership limitations and gross income and asset tests necessary for REIT qualification, we may invest in securities of other REITs, other entities engaged in real estate activities or securities of other issuers, including for the purpose of exercising control over such entities. We may engage in the purchase and sale of investments. We do not underwrite the securities of other issuers. Our officers and directors may change any of these policies without a vote of our stockholders. In the opinion of our management, our properties are adequately covered by insurance.
6
Competition
The healthcare industry is highly competitive and will likely become more competitive in the future. We face competition in making and pricing new investments from other public and private REITs, investment companies, private equity and hedge fund investors, healthcare operators, lenders, developers and other institutional investors, some of whom may have greater resources and lower costs of capital than us. We believe our use of data analytics to underwrite investments and manage our portfolio may provide us a competitive advantage. In addition, a significant amount of our rental and mortgage income is generally derived from facilities in states that require state approval for development and expansion of healthcare facilities. We believe that such state approvals may reduce competition for our operators and enhance the value of our properties. Our operators compete on a local and regional basis with operators of facilities that provide comparable services. The basis of competition for our operators includes, amongst other factors, the quality of care provided, reputation, the physical appearance of a facility, price, the range of services offered, family preference, alternatives for healthcare delivery, the supply of competing properties, physicians, staff, referral sources, location and the size and demographics of the population and surrounding areas.
Increased competition makes it more challenging for us to identify and successfully capitalize on opportunities that meet our objectives. Our ability to compete is also impacted by national and local economic trends, availability of investment alternatives, availability and cost of capital, construction and renovation costs, existing laws and regulations, new legislation and population trends.
Taxation of Omega
Omega elected to be taxed as a REIT, under Sections 856 through 860 of the Code, beginning with our taxable year ended December 31, 1992. To continue to qualify as a REIT, we must continue to meet certain tests that, among other things, generally require that our assets consist primarily of real estate assets, our income be derived primarily from real estate assets, and that we distribute at least 90% of our REIT taxable income (other than net capital gains) to our stockholders annually. Provided we maintain our qualification as a REIT, we generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income taxes at the corporate level on our net income to the extent such net income is distributed to our stockholders annually. Even if we continue to qualify as a REIT, we will continue to be subject to certain federal, state and local taxes on our income and property. We believe that we were organized and have operated in such a manner as to qualify for taxation as a REIT. We intend to continue to operate in a manner that will allow us to maintain our qualification as a REIT, but no assurance can be given that we have operated or will be able to continue to operate in a manner so as to qualify or remain qualified as a REIT.
We have utilized, and may continue to utilize, one or more taxable REIT subsidiary (“TRS”) to engage in activities that REITs may be prohibited from performing, including the provision of management and other services to third parties and the conduct of certain nonqualifying real estate transactions. Our TRSs generally are taxable as regular corporations, and therefore, subject to federal, foreign, state and local income taxes.
To the extent that we do not distribute all of our net capital gain or do distribute at least 90%, but less than 100% of our “REIT taxable income,” as adjusted, we will be subject to tax thereon at regular ordinary and capital gain corporate tax rates. If we were to fail to qualify as a REIT in any taxable year, as a result of a determination that we failed to meet the annual distribution requirement or otherwise, we would be subject to federal and state income tax, and any applicable alternative minimum tax on our taxable income at regular corporate rates with respect to each such taxable year for which the statute of limitations remains open. In addition, even if we continue to qualify as a REIT, we could become subject to certain excise taxes. Moreover, unless entitled to relief under certain statutory provisions, we also would be disqualified from treatment as a REIT for the four taxable years following the year during which qualification is lost. This treatment would significantly reduce our net earnings and cash flow because of our additional tax liability for the years involved, which could significantly impact our financial condition.
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All of our investments are held directly or through entities owned by Omega OP. Omega OP is a pass through entity for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and therefore we are required to take into account our allocable share of each item of Omega OP’s income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit for any taxable year of Omega OP ending within or with our taxable year, without regard to whether we have received or will receive any distribution from Omega OP. Although a partnership agreement for pass through entities generally will determine the allocation of income and losses among partners, such allocations will be disregarded for tax purposes if they do not comply with the provisions of the Code and Treasury Regulations governing partnership allocations. If an allocation is not recognized for federal income tax purposes, the item subject to the allocation will be reallocated in accordance with the partners’ interests in the partnership, which will be determined by considering all the facts and circumstances relating to the economic arrangement of the partners with respect to such item. While Omega OP should generally not be a taxable entity for federal income tax purposes, any state or local revenue, excise or franchise taxes that result from the operating activities of the Omega OP may be incurred at the entity level.
Investors are strongly urged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the potential tax consequences of an investment in us based on such investor’s particular circumstances.
Government Regulation and Reimbursement
The healthcare industry is heavily regulated. Our operators, which are primarily based in the U.S., are subject to extensive and complex federal, state and local healthcare laws and regulations; we also have several U.K.-based operators that are impacted by a variety of laws and regulations in their jurisdiction. These laws and regulations are subject to frequent and substantial changes resulting from the adoption of new legislation, rules and regulations, and administrative and judicial interpretations of existing law. The ultimate timing or effect of these changes, which may be applied retroactively, cannot be predicted. Changes in laws and regulations impacting our operators, in addition to regulatory non-compliance by our operators, can have a significant effect on the operations and financial condition of our operators, which in turn may adversely impact us. There is the potential that we may be subject directly to healthcare laws and regulations because of the broad nature of some of these regulations, such as the Anti-kickback Statute and False Claims Act, among others.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) declared a public health emergency on January 31, 2020 following the World Health Organization's decision to declare COVID-19 a public health emergency of international concern. This declaration, which has been extended through April 14, 2022, allows HHS to provide temporary regulatory waivers and new reimbursement rules designed to equip providers with flexibility to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic by suspending various Medicare patient coverage criteria and documentation and care requirements, including, for example, suspension of the three-day prior hospital stay coverage requirement and expanding the list of approved services which may be provided via telehealth. These regulatory actions have contributed, and may continue to contribute, to a change in census volumes and skilled nursing mix that may not otherwise have occurred. It remains uncertain when federal and state regulators will resume enforcement of those regulations which are waived or otherwise not being enforced during the public health emergency due to the exercise of enforcement discretion.
These temporary changes to regulations and reimbursement, as well as emergency legislation, including the CARES Act enacted on March 27, 2020 and discussed below, continue to have a significant impact on the operations and financial condition of our operators. The extent of the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on the Company’s and our operators’ operational and financial performance will depend on future developments, including the sufficiency and timeliness of additional governmental relief, the duration, spread and intensity of the outbreak, the impact of genetic mutations of the virus into new variants, the impact of vaccine distributions and booster doses on our operators and their populations, the impact of vaccine mandates on staffing shortages at our operators, as well as the difference in how the pandemic may impact SNFs in contrast to ALFs, all of which developments and impacts are uncertain and difficult to predict. Due to these uncertainties, we are not able at this time to estimate the effect of these factors on our business; however, the adverse impact on our business, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows could be material.
8
A significant portion of our operators’ revenue is derived from government-funded reimbursement programs, consisting primarily of Medicare and Medicaid. As federal and state governments continue to focus on healthcare reform initiatives, efforts to reduce costs by government payors will likely continue. Significant limits on the scope of services reimbursed and/or reductions of reimbursement rates could therefore have a material adverse effect on our operators’ results of operations and financial condition. Additionally, new and evolving payor and provider programs that are tied to quality and efficiency could adversely impact our tenants’ and operators’ liquidity, financial condition or results of operations, and there can be no assurance that payments under any of these government healthcare programs are currently, or will be in the future, sufficient to fully reimburse the property operators for their operating and capital expenses. In addition to quality and value based reimbursement reforms, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) has implemented a number of initiatives focused on the reporting of certain facility specific quality of care indicators that could affect our operators, including publicly released quality ratings for all of the nursing homes that participate in Medicare or Medicaid under the CMS “Five Star Quality Rating System.” Facility rankings, ranging from five stars (“much above average”) to one star (“much below average”) are updated on a monthly basis. SNFs are required to provide information for the CMS Nursing Home Compare website regarding staffing and quality measures. These rating changes have impacted referrals to SNFs, and it is possible that changes to this system or other ranking systems could lead to future reimbursement policies that reward or penalize facilities on the basis of the reported quality of care parameters.
The following is a discussion of certain U.S. laws and regulations generally applicable to our operators, and in certain cases, to us.
Reimbursement Changes Related to COVID-19:
U.S. Federal Stimulus Funds and Financial Assistance for Healthcare Providers. In response to the pandemic, Congress has enacted a series of economic stimulus and relief measures. On March 18, 2020, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act was enacted in the U.S., providing a temporary 6.2% increase to each qualifying state and territory’s Medicaid Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (“FMAP”) effective January 1, 2020. The temporary FMAP increase will extend through the last day of the calendar quarter in which the public health emergency terminates. States will make individual determinations about how this additional Medicaid reimbursement will be applied to SNFs, if at all.
In further response to the pandemic, in 2020, the CARES Act authorized approximately $178 billion to be distributed through the Provider Relief Fund to reimburse eligible healthcare providers for healthcare related expenses or lost revenues that are attributable to coronavirus. In addition, in September 2021, HHS announced the release of $25.5 billion in provider funding, including $17 billion of the $178 billion previously authorized through the CARES Act and $8.5 billion for rural providers through the American Rescue Plan Act. The Provider Relief Fund is administered under the broad authority and discretion of HHS and recipients are not required to repay distributions received to the extent they are used in compliance with applicable requirements.
HHS began distributing Provider Relief Fund grants in April 2020 and has made grants available to various provider groups in four general phases. In May 2020, HHS announced that approximately $9.5 billion in targeted distributions would be made available to eligible SNFs, approximately $2.5 billion of which were composed of performance-based incentive payments tied to a facility’s infection rate. Approximately $8.5 billion in additional funds were added to the Provider Relief Fund through the American Rescue Plan Act enacted on March 11, 2021; however, these funds are limited to rural providers and suppliers. In September 2021, HHS announced the release of $25.5 billion of funding, including $17 billion in Phase 4 Provider Relief Fund payments for a broad range of healthcare providers who can document revenue loss and expenses associated with the pandemic between July 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021, as well as release of the $8.5 billion in funding for rural providers, including those with Medicaid and Medicare patients. In addition, in September 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) announced it would allocate $500 million to staffing, training and deployment of state-based nursing home and long-term care “strike teams” to assist facilities with known or suspected COVID-19 outbreaks.
HHS continues to evaluate and provide allocations of, and issue regulation and guidance regarding, grants made under the CARES Act. There are substantial uncertainties regarding the extent to which our operators will receive additional funding from HHS.
9
The CARES Act and related legislation also made other forms of financial assistance available to healthcare providers, which have the potential to impact our operators to varying degrees. This assistance includes Medicare and Medicaid payment adjustments and an expansion of the Medicare Accelerated and Advance Payment Program, which made available accelerated payments of Medicare funds in order to increase cash flow to providers. These payments are loans that providers are scheduled to repay beginning one year from the issuance date of each provider’s or supplier’s accelerated or advance payment, with repayment made through automatic recoupment of 25% of Medicare payments otherwise owed to the provider or supplier for eleven months, followed by an increase to 50% for another six months, after which any outstanding balance would be repaid subject to an interest rate of 4%. We believe these repayments commenced for many of our operators in April 2021 and have adversely impacted, and will continue to adversely impact, operating cash flows of these operators.
Additionally, CMS suspended Medicare sequestration payment adjustments, which would have otherwise reduced payments to Medicare providers by 2%, from May 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020, but also extended sequestration through 2030. The Bipartisan-Bicameral Omnibus COVID Relief Deal passed in December 2020 further extended the suspension of the Medicare sequestration until March 31, 2021, and it most recently has been further extended from December 31, 2021 through March 31, 2022. While not limited to healthcare providers, the CARES Act additionally provided payroll tax relief for employers, allowing them to defer payment of employer Social Security taxes that are otherwise owed for wage payments made after March 27, 2020 through December 31, 2020 to December 31, 2021 with respect to 50% of the payroll taxes owed, with the remaining 50% deferred until December 31, 2022.
Quality of Care Initiatives and Additional Requirements Related to COVID-19. In addition to COVID-19 reimbursement changes, several regulatory initiatives announced in 2020 and 2021 focused on addressing quality of care in long-term care facilities, including those related to COVID-19 testing and infection control protocols, vaccine protocols, staffing levels, reporting requirements, and visitation policies, as well as increased inspection of nursing homes. In August 2021, CMS announced it was developing an emergency regulation requiring staff vaccinations within the nation’s more than 15,000 Medicare and Medicaid-participating nursing homes, and in September 2021, CMS further announced that the scope of the regulation will be expanded to include workers in hospitals, dialysis facilities, ambulatory surgical settings, and home health agencies. In addition, recent updates to the Nursing Home Care website and the Five Star Quality Rating System include revisions to the inspection process, adjustment of staffing rating thresholds, the implementation of new quality measures and the inclusion of a staff turnover percentage (over a 12-month period). Although the American Rescue Plan Act did not allocate specific funds to SNF or ALF providers, approximately $200 million was allocated to quality improvement organizations to provide infection control and vaccination uptake support to SNFs and $500 million has been allocated by the CDC to staffing, training and deployment of state-based nursing home and long-term care “strike teams” to assist facilities with known or suspected COVID-19 outbreaks.
On June 16, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis announced the launch of an investigation into the COVID-19 response of nursing homes and the use of federal funds by nursing homes during the pandemic. The Select Subcommittee continued to be active throughout the remainder of 2020 and 2021. In March 2021, the Oversight Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing on examining the impact of private equity in the U.S. healthcare system, including the impact on quality of care provided within the skilled nursing industry. These hearings, as well as additional calls for government review of the role of private equity in the U.S. healthcare industry, could result in legislation imposing additional requirements on our operators.
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Reimbursement Generally:
Medicaid. The American Rescue Plan Act contains several provisions designed to increase coverage, expand benefits, and adjust federal financing for state Medicaid programs. For example, the American Rescue Plan Act increases the FMAP by 10 percentage points for state home and community-based services expenditures beginning April 1, 2021 through March 30, 2022 in an effort to assist seniors and people with disabilities to receive services safely in the community rather than in nursing homes and other congregate care settings. As a condition for receiving the FMAP increase, states must enhance, expand, or strengthen their Medicaid home and community-based services program during this period. These potential enhancements to Medicaid reimbursement funding may be offset in certain states by state budgetary concerns, the ability of the state to allocate matching funds and to comply with the new requirements, the potential for increased enrollment in Medicaid due to unemployment and declines in family incomes resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, and the potential allocation of state Medicaid funds available for reimbursement away from SNFs in favor of home and community-based programs. These challenges may particularly impact us in states where we have a larger presence, including Florida and Texas. In Texas in particular, several of our operators have historically experienced lower operating margins on their SNFs, as compared to other states, as a result of lower Medicaid reimbursement rates and higher labor costs. Our operators in Texas may also be adversely impacted by the expected expiration of an add-on by the state to the daily reimbursement rate for Medicaid patients that will terminate upon expiration of the federally declared public health emergency. In Florida, while added support to our operators during the pandemic has generally been limited, approximately $100 million in additional FMAP funds for nursing homes was approved by the State in November 2021, with the funds to be distributed through increased Medicaid payment rates over a three-month period. Since our operators’ profit margins on Medicaid patients are generally relatively low, more than modest reductions in Medicaid reimbursement or an increase in the percentage of Medicaid patients has in the past and may in the future adversely affect our operators’ results of operations and financial condition, which in turn could adversely impact us.
Medicare. On July 29, 2021, CMS issued a final rule regarding the government fiscal year 2022 Medicare payment rates and quality payment programs for SNFs, with aggregate Medicare Part A payments projected to increase by $410 million, or 1.2%, for fiscal year 2022 compared to fiscal year 2021. This estimated reimbursement increase is attributable to a 2.7% market basket increase factor less a 0.8 percentage point forecast error adjustment and a 0.7 percentage point productivity adjustment, and a $1.2 million decrease due to the proposed reduction to the SNF prospective payment system rates to account for the recent blood-clotting factors exclusion. The annual update is reduced by two percentage points for SNFs that fail to submit required quality data to CMS under the SNF Quality Reporting Program. CMS has indicated that these impact figures did not incorporate the SNF Value-Based Program reductions that are estimated to be $184.25 million in fiscal year 2022.
Payments to providers continue to be increasingly tied to quality and efficiency. The Patient Driven Payment Model (“PDPM”), which was designed by CMS to improve the incentives to treat the needs of the whole patient, became effective October 1, 2019. Prior to COVID-19, we believed that certain of our operators could realize efficiencies and cost savings from increased concurrent and group therapy under PDPM and some had reported early positive results. Given the ongoing impacts of COVID-19, many operators are and may continue to be restricted from pursuing concurrent and group therapy and unable to realize these benefits. Additionally, our operators continue to adapt to the reimbursement changes and other payment reforms resulting from the value based purchasing programs applicable to SNFs under the 2014 Protecting Access to Medicare Act. These reimbursement changes have had and may, together with any further reimbursement changes to PDPM or value-based purchasing models, in the future have an adverse effect on the operations and financial condition of some operators and could adversely impact the ability of operators to meet their obligations to us.
On May 27, 2020, CMS added physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech-language pathology to the list of approved telehealth Providers for the Medicare Part B programs provided by a SNF as a part of the COVID-19 1135 waiver provisions. The COVID-19 1135 waiver provisions also allow for the facility to bill an originating site fee to CMS for telehealth services provided to Medicare Part B beneficiary residents of the facility when the services are provided by a physician from an alternate location, effective March 6, 2020 through the end of the public health emergency.
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Other Regulation:
Office of the Inspector General Activities. The Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) of HHS has provided long-standing guidance for SNFs regarding compliance with federal fraud and abuse laws. More recently, the OIG has conducted increased oversight activities and issued additional guidance regarding its findings related to identified problems with the quality of care and the reporting and investigation of potential abuse or neglect at group homes, nursing homes and SNFs. The OIG has additionally reviewed the staffing levels reported by SNFs as part of its August 2018 and February 2019 Work Plan updates, and included a review of involuntary transfers and discharges from nursing homes in the June 2019 Work Plan updates. In August 2020, the OIG released its findings regarding its review of staffing levels in SNFs from 2018. The OIG recommended that CMS enhance efforts to ensure nursing homes meet daily staffing requirements and explore ways to provide consumers with additional information on nursing homes’ daily staffing levels and variability. The OIG indicated that while the review was initiated before the COVID-19 pandemic emerged, the pandemic reinforces the importance of sufficient staffing for nursing homes, as inadequate staffing can make it more difficult for nursing homes to respond to infectious disease outbreaks like COVID-19. It is unknown what impact, if any, enhanced scrutiny of staffing levels by OIG and CMS will have on our operators.
Department of Justice and Other Enforcement Actions. SNFs are under intense scrutiny for ensuring the quality of care being rendered to residents and appropriate billing practices conducted by the facility. The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) has historically used the False Claims Act to civilly pursue nursing homes that bill the federal government for services not rendered or care that is grossly substandard. For example, California prosecutors announced in March 2021 an investigation into a skilled nursing provider that is affiliated with one of our operators, alleging the chain manipulated the submission of staffing level data in order to improve its Five Star rating. In 2020, the DOJ launched a National Nursing Home Initiative to coordinate and enhance civil and criminal enforcement actions against nursing homes with grossly substandard deficiencies. Such enforcement activities are unpredictable and may develop over lengthy periods of time. An adverse resolution of any of these enforcement activities or investigations incurred by our operators may involve injunctive relief and/or substantial monetary penalties, either or both of which could have a material adverse effect on their reputation, business, results of operations and cash flows.
Medicare and Medicaid Program Audits. Governmental agencies and their agents, such as the Medicare Administrative Contractors, fiscal intermediaries and carriers, as well as the OIG, CMS and state Medicaid programs, conduct audits of our operators’ billing practices from time to time. CMS contracts with Recovery Audit Contractors on a contingency basis to conduct post-payment reviews to detect and correct improper payments in the fee-for-service Medicare program, to managed Medicare plans and in the Medicaid program. Regional Recovery Audit Contractor program auditors along with the OIG and DOJ are expected to continue their efforts to evaluate SNF Medicare claims for any excessive therapy charges. CMS also employs Medicaid Integrity Contractors to perform post-payment audits of Medicaid claims and identify overpayments. In addition, the state Medicaid agencies and other contractors have increased their review activities. To the extent any of our operators are found out of compliance with any of these laws, regulations or programs, their financial position and results of operations can be adversely impacted, which in turn could adversely impact us.
Fraud and Abuse. There are various federal and state civil and criminal laws and regulations governing a wide array of healthcare provider referrals, relationships and arrangements, including laws and regulations prohibiting fraud by healthcare providers. Many of these complex laws raise issues that have not been clearly interpreted by the relevant governmental authorities and courts.
These laws include: (i) federal and state false claims acts, which, among other things, prohibit providers from filing false claims or making false statements to receive payment from Medicare, Medicaid or other federal or state healthcare programs; (ii) federal and state anti-kickback and fee-splitting statutes, including the Medicare and Medicaid Anti-kickback statute, which prohibit the payment or receipt of remuneration to induce referrals or recommendations of healthcare items or services, such as services provided in a SNF; (iii) federal and state physician self-referral laws (commonly referred to as the Stark Law), which generally prohibit referrals by physicians to entities for designated health services (some of which are provided in SNFs) with which the physician or an immediate family member has a financial relationship; (iv) the federal Civil Monetary Penalties Law, which prohibits, among other things, the knowing presentation of a false or fraudulent claim for certain healthcare services and (v) federal and state privacy laws, including the privacy and security rules contained in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, which provide for the privacy and security of personal health information.
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Violations of healthcare fraud and abuse laws carry civil, criminal and administrative sanctions, including punitive sanctions, monetary penalties, imprisonment, denial of Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement and potential exclusion from Medicare, Medicaid or other federal or state healthcare programs. Additionally, there are criminal provisions that prohibit filing false claims or making false statements to receive payment or certification under Medicare and Medicaid, as well as failing to refund overpayments or improper payments. Violation of the Anti-kickback statute or Stark Law may form the basis for a federal False Claims Act violation. These laws are enforced by a variety of federal, state and local agencies and can also be enforced by private litigants through, among other things, federal and state false claims acts, which allow private litigants to bring qui tam or whistleblower actions, which have become more frequent in recent years.
Several of our operators have responded to subpoenas and other requests for information regarding their operations in connection with inquiries by the DOJ or other regulatory agencies. In addition, MedEquities Realty Trust, Inc., which we acquired in May 2019, has responded to a Civil Investigative Demand from the DOJ in connection with Lakeway Regional Medical Center. See Note 20 – Commitments and Contingencies to the Consolidated Financial Statements.
Privacy. Our operators are subject to various federal, state and local laws and regulations designed to protect the confidentiality and security of patient health information, including the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (“HITECH”), and the corresponding regulations promulgated thereunder (collectively referred to herein as “HIPAA”). The HITECH Act expanded the scope of these provisions by mandating individual notification in instances of breaches of protected health information, providing enhanced penalties for HIPAA violations, and granting enforcement authority to states’ Attorneys General in addition to the HHS Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”). Additionally, in a final rule issued in January 2013, HHS modified the standard for determining whether a breach has occurred by creating a presumption that any non-permitted acquisition, access, use or disclosure of protected health information is a breach unless the covered entity or business associate can demonstrate through a risk assessment that there is a low probability that the information has been compromised.
Various states have similar laws and regulations that govern the maintenance and safeguarding of patient records, charts and other information generated in connection with the provision of professional medical services. These laws and regulations require our operators to expend the requisite resources to secure protected health information, including the funding of costs associated with technology upgrades. Operators found in violation of HIPAA or any other privacy law or regulation may face significant monetary penalties. In addition, compliance with an operator’s notification requirements in the event of a breach of unsecured protected health information could cause reputational harm to an operator’s business.
Licensing and Certification. Our operators and facilities are subject to various federal, state and local licensing and certification laws and regulations, including laws and regulations under Medicare and Medicaid requiring operators of SNFs and ALFs to comply with extensive standards governing operations. Governmental agencies administering these laws and regulations regularly inspect our operators’ facilities and investigate complaints. Our operators and their managers receive notices of observed violations and deficiencies from time to time, and sanctions have been imposed from time to time on facilities operated by them. In addition, many states require certain healthcare providers to obtain a certificate of need, which requires prior approval for the construction, expansion or closure of certain healthcare facilities, which has the potential to impact some of our operators’ abilities to expand or change their businesses.
Other Laws and Regulations. Additional federal, state and local laws and regulations affect how our operators conduct their operations, including laws and regulations protecting consumers against deceptive practices and otherwise generally affecting our operators’ management of their property and equipment and the conduct of their operations (including laws and regulations involving fire, health and safety; the Americans with Disabilities Act (the “ADA”), which imposes certain requirements to make facilities accessible to persons with disabilities, the costs for which we may be directly or indirectly responsible; the U.S. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (collectively referred to as the “Healthcare Reform Law”), which amended requirements for staff training, discharge planning, infection prevention and control programs, and pharmacy services, among others; staffing; quality of services, including care and food service; residents’ rights, including abuse and neglect laws; and health standards, including those set by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (in the U.S.). It is anticipated that our operators will continue to face additional federal and state regulatory requirements related to the operation of their facilities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These requirements may continue to evolve and develop over lengthy periods of time.
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General and Professional Liability. Although arbitration agreements have been effective in limiting general and professional liabilities for SNF and long-term care providers, there have been numerous lawsuits in recent years challenging the validity of arbitration agreements in long-term care settings. On July 16, 2019, CMS issued a final rule lifting the prohibition on pre-dispute arbitration agreements offered to residents at the time of admission provided that certain requirements are met. The rule prohibits providers from requiring residents to sign binding arbitration agreements as a condition for receiving care and requires that the agreements specifically grant residents the explicit right to rescind the agreement within thirty calendar days of signing. A number of professional liability and employment related claims have been filed or are threatened to be filed against long-term care providers related to COVID-19. While such claims may be subject to liability protection provisions within various state executive orders or legislation and/or federal legislation, an adverse resolution of any of legal proceeding or investigations against our operators may involve injunctive relief and/or substantial monetary penalties, either or both of which could have a material adverse effect on our operators’ reputation, business, results of operations and cash flows.
U.K. Regulations. The U.K. also imposes very high levels of regulation on our U.K.-based operators. In England, where all of our operators are based, the Care Quality Commission has regulatory oversight authority over the health and social care sectors and is responsible for approving, registering and inspecting our operators and the properties where they provide services. There is also a detailed legislative and regulatory framework in the U.K. designed to protect the vulnerable (whether by virtue of age or physical and/or mental impairment) and to prevent abuse. Each of these regulatory regimes carries significant enforcement powers, including the ability to criminally prosecute offending operators and facilities, impose fines or revoke registrations. Additionally, under the purview of the Competition and Markets Authority, local authorities are tasked with providing and funding the care needs of eligible residents within the applicable local authority area. There is ongoing debate and uncertainty within the U.K. as to how growing care needs will be met and funded in the future, and it is not clear at this stage what, if any, or the extent of such, impact will be on our U.K-based operators.
Additionally, there has been significant legislation passed and guidance issued in the U.K. in respect of the COVID-19 pandemic. Much of the legislation or guidance set out the additional precautions, measures or restrictions which were required in the care sector, including infection control measures and vaccination requirements for care sector workers. In addition, the U.K. government provided certain support to the care sector, including the provision of free testing and personal protective equipment (“PPE”) in certain settings. The U.K. government also provided some financial support to the sector, predominantly to publicly-funded services but also relation to infection control and testing measures it had introduced. This additional legislation has significantly increased the regulatory burdens under which our U.K. operators must currently deliver services and continues to have a significant impact on the operations and financial condition of our U.K. operators, which has been somewhat offset by the level of stimulus provided.
Environmental, Social and Governance ("ESG")
We prioritize environmental, social and governance initiatives that matter most to our business and shareholders. Our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of our Board of Directors has been charged with primary oversight of our sustainability efforts. The Company has established an ESG Steering Committee, with senior representation from all divisions of the company, that is responsible for advancing the Company’s governance, sustainability, and social programs, including diversity and inclusion. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee exercises oversight of the ESG Steering Committee.
As a triple-net landlord, our third-party operators maintain operational control and responsibility for our real estate on a day-to-day basis. While our ability to mandate environmental changes to their operations is limited, our tenants are contractually bound to preserve and maintain our properties in good working order and condition. In connection with this, they are required to meet or exceed annual expenditure thresholds on capital improvements and enhancements of our properties, which in some cases may facilitate improvements in the environmental performance of our properties and reduces energy usage, water usage, and direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions. Beginning in 2021, we have also implemented a capital expenditure sustainability initiative to encourage operators to invest in financially beneficial and environmentally enhancing investment projects. The goal is to incentivize operators to invest in sustainable capital projects that provide a favorable return on investment while reducing the environmental footprint of these operations. Our due diligence on real estate acquisitions generally includes environmental assessments as part of our analysis to understand the environmental condition of the property, and to determine whether the property meets certain environmental standards. Similarly, during the due diligence process, we seek to evaluate the risk of physical, natural disaster or extreme weather patterns on the properties we are looking to acquire and to assess their compliance with building codes, which often results in remediations that incorporate sustainable improvements into our properties.
We are committed to providing a positive and engaging work environment for our employees and taking an active role in the betterment of the communities in which our employees live and work. See also "Human Capital Management" immediately below.
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Additional information regarding our ESG programs and initiatives is available in the ESG section of our website at www.omegahealthcare.com. Information on our website, including our Corporate ESG Report or sections thereof, is not incorporated by reference into this Annual Report.
Human Capital Management
Our success is based on the focused passion and dedication of our people. We believe our employees’ commitment to Omega provides better service to our tenants and stakeholders, supports an inclusive and collegial working environment and generates long-term value for our shareholders and the communities which we serve. As of February 1, 2022, we had 70 employees including the executive officers listed below, none of whom is subject to a collective bargaining agreement. Due to the size and nature of our business, our future performance depends to a significant degree upon the continued contributions of our executive management team and other key employees. As such, the ability to attract, develop and retain qualified personnel will continue to be important to the Company’s long-term success.
We have a long-standing commitment to being an equal opportunity employer. In 2021, Omega was included in the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index - one of only 380 companies worldwide, and fewer than 15 U.S. REITs, to be included in the 2021 index. In January 2022, Omega was included in the Bloomberg 2022 Gender-Equality Index for the third consecutive year. Additionally, in 2021, we reinforced our diversity and inclusion commitment by signing the CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion Pledge, one of the largest CEO-driven business commitments to act on and advance diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace. The Company has expanded its recruitment practices to reach more diverse candidates for employment and Board positions and has developed an internship program with a focus on increasing diversity in the pipeline of eligible employees. The Company requires employees and Board members to certify its Code of Business Conduct & Ethics periodically, and from time to time, conducts compliance training for all employees and Directors, including diversity and inclusion training. As of February 1, 2022, at the executive level, one of the Company’s four executive officers is a woman and brings ethnic diversity to the team, and on the senior management team, 25% are women and 25% bring ethnic diversity to the team.
We are committed to providing a positive and engaging work environment for our employees and taking an active role in the betterment of the communities in which our employees live and work. Our full-time employees are provided a competitive benefits program, including comprehensive healthcare benefits and a 401(k) plan with a matching contribution from the Company, the opportunity to participate in our employee stock purchase program, bonus and incentive pay opportunities, competitive paid time-off benefits and paid parental leave, wellness programs, continuing education and development opportunities, and periodic engagement surveys. In addition, we believe that giving back to our community is an extension of our mission to improve the lives of our stockholders, our employees, and their families. The Company has implemented a matching program for charitable contributions of employees.
Information about our Executive Officers
Biographical information regarding our executive officers and their ages as of February 1, 2022 are set forth below:
C. Taylor Pickett (60) is our Chief Executive Officer and has served in this capacity since June 2001. Mr. Pickett has also served as Director of the Company since May 30, 2002. Mr. Pickett has also been a member of the board of trustees of Corporate Office Properties Trust, an office REIT focusing on U.S. government agencies and defense contractors, since November 2013. From January 1993 to June 2001, Mr. Pickett served as a member of the senior management team of Integrated Health Services, Inc., most recently as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Prior to joining Integrated Health Services, Inc. Mr. Pickett held various positions at PHH Corporation and KPMG Peat Marwick.
Daniel J. Booth (58) is our Chief Operating Officer and has served in this capacity since October 2001. From 1993 to October 2001, Mr. Booth served as a member of the management team of Integrated Health Services, Inc., most recently serving as Senior Vice President, Finance. Prior to joining Integrated Health Services, Inc., Mr. Booth served as a Vice President in the Healthcare Lending Division of Maryland National Bank (now Bank of America).
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Robert O. Stephenson (58) is our Chief Financial Officer and has served in this capacity since August 2001. From 1996 to July 2001, Mr. Stephenson served as the Senior Vice President and Treasurer of Integrated Health Services, Inc. Prior to joining Integrated Health Services, Inc., Mr. Stephenson held various positions at CSX Intermodal, Inc., Martin Marietta Corporation and Electronic Data Systems.
Gail D. Makode (46) is our Chief Legal Officer, General Counsel and has served in this capacity since September 2019. Previously, she served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of IES Holdings, Inc., from October 2012 to September 2019. Prior to IES, she served in various legal capacities at MBIA Inc., including as General Counsel and Member of the Board at MBIA Insurance Corporation and Chief Compliance Officer of MBIA Inc., from 2006 to 2012. Earlier in her career, she served as Vice President and Counsel for Deutsche Bank AG, and as an associate at Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen, & Hamilton, where she specialized in public and private securities offerings and mergers and acquisitions.
Available Information
Our website address is www.omegahealthcare.com. Our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and any amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) are available on our website, free of charge, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such materials with, or furnish them to, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Additionally, the SEC maintains a website that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC, including us, at www.sec.gov.
Item 1A – Risk Factors
This section discusses material risk factors that may affect our business, operations and financial condition. It does not describe all risks and uncertainties applicable to us, our industry or ownership of our securities. If any of the following risks, or any other risks and uncertainties that are not addressed below or that we have not yet identified, actually occur, we could be materially adversely affected and the value of our securities could decline.
Risks Related to the Operators of Our Facilities
Our financial position could be weakened and our ability to make distributions and fulfill our obligations with respect to our indebtedness could be limited if our operators, or a portion thereof, become unable to meet their obligations to us or fail to renew or extend their relationship with us as their lease terms expire or their mortgages mature, or if we become unable to lease or re-lease our facilities or make mortgage loans on economically favorable terms. We have no operational control over our operators.
The bankruptcy or insolvency of our operators could limit or delay our ability to recover on our investments.
We are exposed to the risk that a distressed or insolvent operator may not be able to meet its lease, loan, mortgage or other obligations to us or other third parties. This risk is heightened during a period of economic or political instability. Although each of our lease and loan agreements typically provides us with the right to terminate, evict an operator, foreclose on our collateral, demand immediate payment and exercise other remedies upon the bankruptcy or insolvency of an operator, title 11 of the U.S. Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”) would limit or, at a minimum, delay our ability to collect unpaid pre-bankruptcy rents and mortgage payments and to pursue other remedies against a bankrupt operator. While we sometimes have third-party guarantees of an operator’s lease or loan obligations, such guarantees can be expensive to enforce, and have their own risks of collection as against the guarantors.
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Leases. A bankruptcy filing by one of our lessee operators would typically prevent us from collecting unpaid pre-bankruptcy rents or evicting the operator, absent approval of the bankruptcy court. The Bankruptcy Code provides a lessee with the option to assume or reject an unexpired lease within certain specified periods of time. Generally, a lessee is required to pay all rent that becomes payable between the date of its bankruptcy filing and the date of the assumption or rejection of the lease (although such payments will likely be delayed as a result of the bankruptcy filing). If one of our lessee operators chooses to assume its lease with us, the operator must promptly cure all monetary defaults existing under the lease (including payment of unpaid pre-bankruptcy rents) and provide adequate assurance of its ability to perform its future lease obligations. Even where a lessee operator assumes its lease with us, it will first often threaten to reject that lease to obtain better lease terms from us, and we sometimes have to consider making, or we do make, such economic concessions to avoid rejection of the lease and our taking a closed facility back. If one of our lessee operators opts to reject its lease with us, we would have a claim against such operator for unpaid and future rents payable under the lease, but such claim would be subject to a statutory “cap” under the Bankruptcy Code, and would likely result in a recovery substantially less than the face value of such claim. Although the operator’s rejection of the lease would permit us to recover possession of the leased facility, we would likely face losses, costs and delays associated with repairs and/or maintenance of the facility and then re-leasing the facility to a new operator, or costs associated with selling the facility. In any event, re-leasing a facility or selling it could take a material amount of time, and the pool of interested and qualified tenants or buyers will be limited due to the unique nature of our properties, which may depress values and our eventual recovery. Finally, whether a lease operator in bankruptcy ends up assuming or rejecting our lease, we will incur legal and collection costs, which can be difficult or impossible to recover.
Several other factors could impact our rights under leases with bankrupt operators. First, the operator could seek to assign its lease with us to a third party. The Bankruptcy Code disregards anti-assignment provisions in leases to permit the assignment of unexpired leases to third parties (provided all monetary defaults under the lease are promptly cured and the assignee can demonstrate its ability to perform its obligations under the lease). Second, in instances in which we have entered into a master lease agreement with an operator that operates more than one facility, the bankruptcy court could determine that the master lease was comprised of separate, divisible leases (each of which could be separately assumed or rejected), rather than a single, integrated lease (which would have to be assumed or rejected in its entirety). Finally, the bankruptcy court could re-characterize our lease agreement as a disguised financing arrangement, which could require us to receive bankruptcy court approval to foreclose or pursue other remedies with respect to the facility.
Mortgages. A bankruptcy filing by an operator to which we have made a loan secured by a mortgage would typically prevent us from collecting unpaid pre-bankruptcy mortgage payments and foreclosing on our collateral, absent approval of the bankruptcy court. As an initial matter, we could ask the bankruptcy court to order the operator to make periodic payments or provide other financial assurances to us during the bankruptcy case (known as “adequate protection”), but the ultimate decision regarding “adequate protection” (including the timing and amount of any “adequate protection” payments) rests with the bankruptcy court. In addition, we would need bankruptcy court approval before commencing or continuing any foreclosure action against the operator’s collateral (including a facility). The bankruptcy court could withhold such approval, especially if the operator can demonstrate that the facility or other collateral is necessary for an effective reorganization and that we have a sufficient “equity cushion” in the facility or that we are otherwise protected from any diminution in value of the collateral. If the bankruptcy court does not either grant us “adequate protection” or permit us to foreclose on our collateral, we may not receive any loan payments until after the bankruptcy court confirms a plan of reorganization for the operator. In addition, in any bankruptcy case of an operator to which we have made a loan, the operator may seek bankruptcy court approval to pay us (i) over a longer period of time than the terms of our loan, (ii) at a different interest rate, and/or (iii) for only the value of the collateral, instead of the full amount of the loan. Finally, even if the bankruptcy court permits us to foreclose on the facility, we would still be subject to the losses, costs and other risks associated with a foreclosure sale, including possible successor liability under government programs, indemnification obligations and suspension or delay of third-party payments. Should such events occur, our income and cash flow from operations would be adversely affected.
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Failure by our operators to comply with government regulations may adversely impact their ability to make debt or lease payments to us.
Our operators are subject to numerous federal, state and local laws and regulations in the U.S. and, for certain operators, in the U.K., including those described in Item 1. Business – Government Regulation and Reimbursement. Laws and regulations impacting our operators include, without limitation, those relating to reimbursement (including Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement programs in the US), quality of care initiatives, licensing and certification of our operators, fraud and abuse laws and regulations, privacy and security laws. Other federal, state and local laws and regulations also affect how our operators conduct their operations. We cannot predict the effect that the costs of complying with these laws may have on the revenues of our operators, and thus their ability to meet their obligations to us. In addition, requirements applicable to our operators are subject to frequent and substantial changes (sometimes applied retroactively) resulting from new legislation, adoption of rules and regulations, and administrative and judicial interpretations of existing law, and any changes in the regulatory framework could have a material adverse effect on our tenants, operators, guarantors and managers. Any of these changes may be more pronounced following federal and state leadership changes and particularly following a change in presidential administrations. The ultimate timing or effect of these changes cannot be predicted. These changes may have a dramatic effect on our operators’ costs of doing business and on the amount of reimbursement by both government and other third-party payors. The failure of any of our operators to comply with these laws, requirements and regulations could adversely affect their ability to meet their obligations to us. If we fail to effectively implement or appropriately adjust our operational and strategic initiatives with respect to the implementation of new laws and regulations, or do not do so as effectively as our competitors, our results of operations may be materially adversely affected.
Our U.S. operators depend on reimbursement from governmental and other third-party payors, and reimbursement rates from such payors may be reduced or modified, including through reductions to the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
Changes in the reimbursement rate or methods of payment from governmental and other third-party payors, including the Medicare and Medicaid programs, or the implementation of other measures to reduce reimbursements for services provided by our operators has in the past, and could in the future, result in a substantial reduction in our operators’ revenues and operating margins. Reimbursement from governmental and other third-party payors could be reduced as part of spending cuts and tax reform initiatives that impact Medicare, Medicaid or Medicare Advantage Plans, or as part of retroactive adjustments during claims settlement processes or as a result of post-payment audits. Further, alternative payment models, as well as other legislative initiatives, have the potential to affect Medicare payments to SNFs, including, but not limited to, provisions changing the payment methodology, setting reimbursement caps, implementing value based purchasing and payment bundling, and studying the appropriateness of restrictions on payments for healthcare acquired conditions. In some cases, states have enacted or are considering enacting measures designed to reduce Medicaid expenditures or freeze Medicaid rates and to make changes to private healthcare insurance, and several commercial payors have expressed an intent to pursue certain value-based purchasing models and initiatives. Since our operators’ profit margins on Medicaid patients are generally relatively low, more than modest reductions in Medicaid reimbursement and an increase in the number of Medicaid patients could place some operators in financial distress, which in turn could adversely affect us. If funding for Medicare and/or Medicaid is reduced, it could have a material adverse effect on our operators’ results of operations and financial condition, which could adversely affect our operators’ ability to meet their obligations to us. Significant limits on the scope of services reimbursed and on reimbursement rates, as well as changes in reimbursement policies or other measures altering payment methodologies for services provided by our operators, could have a material adverse effect on our operators’ results of operations and financial condition, which could cause the revenues of our operators to decline and negatively impact their ability to meet their obligations to us.
We may be unable to find a replacement operator for one or more of our leased properties.
From time to time, we need to find a replacement operator for one or more of our leased properties for a variety of reasons, including upon the expiration of the lease term or the occurrence of an operator default. While we are attempting to locate one or more replacement operators, we sometimes experience and may in the future experience a decrease or cessation of rental payments on the applicable property or properties. We cannot assure you that any of our current or future operators will elect to renew their respective leases with us upon expiration of the terms thereof. Similarly, we cannot assure you that we will be able to locate a suitable replacement operator or, if we are successful in locating a replacement operator, that the rental payments from the new operator would not be significantly less than the existing rental payments. Our ability to locate a suitable replacement operator may be significantly delayed or limited by various state licensing, receivership, certificate of need or other laws, as well as by Medicare and Medicaid change-of-ownership rules. We also may incur substantial additional expenses in connection with any such licensing, receivership or change-of-ownership proceedings. Any such delays, limitations and expenses could materially delay or impact our ability to collect rent, obtain possession of leased properties or otherwise exercise remedies for default.
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Our operators may be subject to significant legal actions that could result in their increased operating costs and substantial uninsured liabilities, which may affect their ability to meet their obligations to us; and we may become party to such legal actions.
Our operators may be subject to claims for damages relating to the services that they provide. While we are unable to predict the scope of future federal, state and local regulations and legislation, including the Medicare and Medicaid statutes and regulations, we believe that long-term care providers will continue to be the focus of governmental investigations, particularly in the area of Medicare/Medicaid false claims and in the use of COVID-19 related funds and compliance with infection control and quality standards. We can give no assurance that the insurance coverage maintained by our operators will cover all claims made against them or continue to be available at a reasonable cost, if at all. In some states, insurance coverage for the risk of punitive damages arising from professional and general liability claims and/or litigation may not, in certain cases, be available to operators due to state law prohibitions or limitations of availability. As a result, our operators operating in these states may be liable for punitive damage awards that are either not covered or are in excess of their insurance policy limits.
Any adverse determination in a legal proceeding or governmental investigation, whether currently asserted or arising in the future, could have a material adverse effect on an operator’s financial condition and its ability to meet its obligations to us, which, in turn, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and ability to make distributions to our stockholders.
In addition, we may in some circumstances be named as a defendant in litigation involving the services provided by our operators. In the past, we and several of our wholly-owned subsidiaries have been named as defendants in professional liability and general liability claims related to our owned and operated facilities, and we could be named as defendants in similar suits in the future. In these suits, patients of our operators have alleged significant damages, including punitive damages, against the defendants. Although we generally have no involvement in the services provided by our operators, and our standard lease and loan agreements generally require our operators to indemnify us and carry insurance to cover us in certain cases, a significant judgment against us in such litigation could exceed our and our operators’ insurance coverage, which would require us to make payments to cover the judgment.
Increased competition as well as increased operating costs result in lower revenues for some of our operators and may affect the ability of our operators to meet their obligations to us.
The long-term healthcare industry is highly competitive and we expect that it may become more competitive in the future. Our operators are competing with numerous other companies providing similar healthcare services or alternatives such as home health agencies, life care at home, community-based service programs, retirement communities and convalescent centers. Our operators compete on a number of different levels including the quality of care provided, reputation, the physical appearance of a facility, price, the range of services offered, family preference, alternatives for healthcare delivery, the supply of competing properties, physicians, staff, referral sources, location and the size and demographics of the population in the surrounding areas. Our operators may encounter increased competition in the future that could limit their ability to attract residents or expand their businesses and therefore affect their ability to pay their lease or mortgage payments and meet their obligations to us.
In addition, the market for qualified personnel is highly competitive and our operators may experience difficulties in attracting and retaining such personnel, in particular due to labor constraints and, in some cases, wage increases imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Increases in labor costs could affect our operators’ ability to meet their obligations to us, which could be particularly acute in certain states that have established minimum staffing requirements.
We may be unable to successfully foreclose on the collateral securing our mortgage loans, and even if we are successful in our foreclosure efforts, we may be unable to successfully find a replacement operator, or operate or occupy the underlying real estate, which may adversely affect our ability to recover our investments.
If an operator defaults under one of our mortgage loans, we may foreclose on the loan or otherwise protect our interest by acquiring title to the property. In such a scenario, we may be required to make substantial improvements or repairs to maximize the facility’s investment potential. Operators may contest enforcement of foreclosure or other remedies, seek bankruptcy protection against our exercise of enforcement or other remedies and/or bring claims for lender liability in response to actions to enforce mortgage obligations. Even if we are able to successfully foreclose on the collateral securing our mortgage loans, we may be unable to expeditiously find a replacement operator, if at all, or otherwise successfully operate or occupy the property, which could adversely affect our ability to recover our investment.
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Uninsured losses or losses in excess of our operators’ insurance coverage could adversely affect our financial position and our cash flow.
Under the terms of our leases, our operators are generally required to maintain comprehensive general liability, fire, flood, earthquake, boiler and machinery, nursing home or long-term care professional liability and extended coverage insurance with respect to our properties with policy specifications set forth in the leases or other written agreements between us and the operator. However, our properties may be adversely affected by casualty losses which exceed insurance coverages and reserves. In addition, we cannot provide any assurances that our tenants will maintain the required coverages, that we will continue to require the same levels of insurance under our leases, or that such insurance will be available at a reasonable cost in the future or that the policies maintained will fully cover all losses on our properties upon the occurrence of a catastrophic event. We also cannot make any guaranty as to the future financial viability of the insurers that underwrite the policies maintained by our tenants, or, alternatively if our tenants utilize captive or self-insurance programs, that such programs will be adequately funded.
Should an uninsured loss or a loss in excess of insured limits occur, we could lose both our investment in, and anticipated profits and cash flows from, the property and disputes over insurance claims could arise. Even if it were practicable to restore the property to its condition prior to the damage caused by a major casualty, the operations of the affected property would likely be suspended for a considerable period of time.
Our development and redevelopment projects may not yield anticipated returns.
We consider and, when appropriate, invest in various development and redevelopment projects. In deciding whether to make an investment in a particular project, we make certain assumptions regarding the expected future performance of the property. Our assumptions are subject to risks generally associated with development and redevelopment projects, including, among others, that:
| ● | Our operators may not be able to complete the project on schedule or within budgeted amounts; |
| ● | Our operators may encounter delays in obtaining or fail to obtain all necessary zoning, land use, building, occupancy, environmental and other governmental permits and authorizations, or underestimate the costs necessary to develop or redevelop the property to market standards; |
| ● | Volatility in the price of construction materials or labor may increase project costs; |
| ● | The builders may fail to perform or satisfy the expectations of our operators; |
| ● | We may incorrectly forecast risks associated with development in new geographic regions; |
| ● | Demand for our project may decrease prior to completion, due to competition from other developments; and |
| ● | New facilities may take longer than expected to reach stabilized operating levels, if at all. |
If any of the risks described above occur, our development and redevelopment projects may not yield anticipated returns, which could have a material adverse effect on us.
Risks Related to Us and Our Operations
The COVID-19 pandemic and measures intended to prevent its spread could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition.
The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly and adversely impacted, and may continue to impact SNFs and long-term care providers due to higher rates of virus transmission and fatality among the elderly and frail populations these facilities serve. As a result, many of our operators have been, and may continue to be, significantly impacted by the pandemic. See Item 2 – Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Overview. During 2021, four of our operators have either missed contractual payments for a period or have informed us that they would be unable to pay us rent for the foreseeable future. We also placed six operators, including three of the non-paying operators, on a cash basis of revenue recognition during 2021, as collection of substantially all contractual lease payments with these six operators was no longer probable. We believe these operators were impacted by, among other things, reduced revenue as a result of lower occupancy and increased expenses resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as uncertainties regarding the availability of sufficient government support. In connection with these developments, we have written off approximately $36.0 million in aggregate of straight-line receivables to rental income for the year ended December 31, 2021 (in connection with the six operators placed on a cash basis during the year). We have also taken impairments of $83.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 in connection with loans outstanding with Agemo Holdings, LLC, Gulf Coast Health Care LLC and Guardian Healthcare, all of whom are non-paying operators. The six operators that were placed on a cash basis of revenue recognition in 2021 collectively represent 6.6% and 7.3% of our total revenue, respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 (excluding the impact of write-offs in 2021 and 2020).
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Continued uncertainty exists relating to our other operators’ ability to meet their payments obligations generally or meet their payment obligations to us, including due to continued uncertainty regarding the availability of sufficient government support, the persistence of staffing shortages that have impacted, and may continue to impact, our operators’ occupancy levels and profitability, the impact of governmental vaccine mandates for staff on ongoing staffing shortages, and other factors that may impact virus transmission in our facilities, including the impact of genetic mutations of the virus into new variants, as well as the commencement in April 2021 for many of our operators of the repayment of accelerated payments of Medicare funds that were previously received as Advanced Medicare payments in 2020, and the commencement in December 2021 of repayment of deferred FICA obligations. To the extent our operators are unable to meet their payment obligations, we may record additional impairment charges with respect to straight-line rent receivables associated with any such operator or with respect to outstanding loans and our financial condition could be adversely impacted. See “Our assets, including our real estate and loans, are subject to impairment charges, and our valuation and reserve estimates are based on assumptions and may be subject to adjustment” in Item 1A contained in Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Our operators have been, and continue to be, impacted by the pandemic in numerous ways. In addition to experiencing outbreaks of positive cases and deaths of residents and employees during the pandemic, our operators have been required to, and continue to, adapt their operations rapidly throughout the pandemic to manage the spread of the COVID-19 virus as well as the implementation of new treatments and vaccines, and to implement new requirements relating to infection control, staffing levels, PPE, quality of care, visitation protocols, and reporting, among other regulations, throughout the pandemic while facing staffing shortages that have accelerated during the pandemic and that may impede the delivery of care. The federal government announced in August and September 2021 that it would be requiring SNF and healthcare workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and has issued an emergency implementing regulation effective November 5, 2021 requiring covered healthcare facilities to ensure eligible staff have received a first vaccine dose as of December 5, 2021 and a second dose of a two-dose vaccine as of January 4, 2022, with certain permitted exemptions in alignment with federal law; these vaccination deadlines were subsequently extended by CMS by between one to two months depending on the applicable state. Significant uncertainty remains regarding the potential impact such mandates may have on ongoing staffing shortages in our facilities, which have caused some operators to limit admissions. In addition, it remains uncertain when and to what extent vaccination programs for COVID-19, which have been implemented in most of our facilities, will continue to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 in our facilities, or how effective existing vaccines and booster doses will be against the variants of the COVID-19 virus; the impact of these programs will depend in part on the continued speed, distribution, efficacy and delivery of the vaccine and booster doses in our facilities, compliance with staff vaccination requirements as well as participation levels in vaccination programs among the residents and employees of our operators. Our operators have continued to report considerable variation in participation levels among both employees and residents, which we believe may change over time with additional vaccination education efforts for residents and implementation of vaccine mandates for staff.
In addition to the risks associated with managing the spread of the virus, delivery of the vaccines and care of their patients and residents, many of our operators reported incurring, and may continue to incur, significant cost increases as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, with dramatic increases for facilities with positive cases. We believe these increases primarily stem from elevated labor costs, in part as a result of staffing shortages, including the increased use of overtime and bonus pay and reliance on agency staffing, as well as a significant increase in both the cost and usage of PPE, testing equipment and processes and supplies, as well as implementation of new infection control protocols and delivery of the vaccine. In addition, many of our operators have experienced declines in occupancy levels as a result of the pandemic. We believe these declines may be in part due to staffing shortages, which in some cases have required operators to limit admissions, as well as COVID-19-induced fatalities at the facilities, the delay of SNF placement and/or utilization of alternative care settings for those with lower level of care needs, the suspension or postponement of elective hospital procedures, fewer discharges from hospitals to SNFs and higher hospital readmittances from SNFs. We continue to monitor the impact of occupancy levels at many of our operators, and it remains uncertain whether and when demand and occupancy levels will return to pre-COVID-19 levels.
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Federal relief efforts for SNFs and ALFs was limited in 2021 as have been relief efforts in certain states, and further government support will likely be needed to continue to offset these impacts. It is unclear whether and to what extent such government support has been and will continue to be sufficient and timely to offset these impacts. In particular, it remains unclear whether relief will be distributed to our operators in any meaningful way or whether additional Medicaid funds will ultimately support reimbursement to our operators. Further, to the extent the impacts of the pandemic continue or accelerate and are not offset by continued government relief that is sufficient and timely, we anticipate that the operating results of certain of our operators would be materially and adversely affected, some may be unwilling or unable to pay their contractual obligations to us in full or on a timely basis and we may be unable to restructure such obligations on terms as favorable to us as those currently in place. Even if operators are able to avail themselves of government relief to offset some of these costs, they may face challenges in complying with the terms and conditions of government support and may face longer-term adverse impacts to their personnel and business operations from the COVID-19 pandemic, including potential patient litigation and decreased demand for their services, loss of business due to an interruption in their operations, workforce challenges, new regulatory restrictions, or other liabilities related to gathering restrictions, quarantines, reopening plans, vaccine distribution or delivery, spread of infection or other related factors.
Numerous state and local governments and the federal government have initiated efforts that may also affect landlords’ and/or mortgagees’ ability to collect payments due or enforce remedies for the failure to pay amounts due. Additionally, a number of professional liability and employment related claims have been filed or are threatened to be filed against long-term care providers related to the COVID-19 pandemic. While such claims may be subject to liability protection provisions within various state executive orders or legislation and/or federal legislation, an adverse resolution of any of legal proceeding or investigations against our operators may involve injunctive relief and/or substantial monetary penalties, either or both of which could have a material adverse effect on our reputation, business, results of operations and cash flows.
The COVID-19 pandemic has from time to time also caused, and may continue to cause, severe economic, market and other disruptions worldwide. The pandemic has led governments and other authorities in the U.S., U.K. and around the world to impose measures intended to control its spread, including but not limited to, restrictions on freedom of movement and business operations which may remain in place or be reinstated along with continuing uncertainty around the potential duration of the pandemic. We cannot assure you that conditions in the bank lending, capital and other financial markets will not deteriorate or fluctuate as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, or that our access to capital and other sources of funding will not become constrained, which could adversely affect the availability and terms of future borrowings, renewals or refinancing. In addition, our employees may be impacted directly or indirectly by the pandemic and we may be required to make changes to our internal controls as a result of changes in our business processes or personnel; any such changes may increase our operational and financial reporting risks.
The extent of the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on our and our operators’ operational and financial performance will depend on future developments, including the ability to control the spread of the outbreak generally and in our facilities, and the delivery and efficacy of and participation in vaccination programs and other treatments for COVID-19, government funds and other support for the senior care sector and the efficacy of other policies and measures that may mitigate the impact of the pandemic, as well as the future demand for needs-based skilled nursing care and senior living facilities, all of which are uncertain and difficult to predict. Due to these uncertainties, we are not able at this time to estimate the effect of these factors on our business, but the adverse impact on our business, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows could be material.
There are no assurances of our ability to pay dividends in the future.
Our ability to pay dividends may be adversely affected upon the occurrence of any of the risks described herein. Our payment of dividends is subject to compliance with restrictions contained in our credit agreements, the indentures governing our senior notes and any preferred stock that our Board may from time to time designate and authorize for issuance. All dividends will be paid at the discretion of our Board and will depend upon our earnings, our financial condition, maintenance of our REIT status and such other factors as our Board may deem relevant from time to time. There are no assurances of our ability to pay dividends in the future. In addition, our dividends in the past have included, and may in the future include a return of capital.
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We rely on external sources of capital to fund future capital needs, and if we encounter difficulty in obtaining such capital, we may not be able to make future investments necessary to grow our business or meet maturing commitments.
As a REIT under the Code, we are required to, among other things, distribute at least 90% of our REIT taxable income each year to our stockholders. Because of this distribution requirement, we may not be able to fund, from cash retained from operations, all future capital needs, including capital needed to make investments and to satisfy or refinance maturing commitments. As a result, we rely on external sources of capital, including debt and equity financing. If we are unable to obtain needed capital at all or only on unfavorable terms from these sources, we might not be able to make the investments needed to grow our business, or to meet our obligations and commitments as they mature, which could negatively affect the ratings of our debt and even, in extreme circumstances, affect our ability to continue operations. We may not be in a position to take advantage of future investment opportunities in the event that we are unable to access the capital markets on a timely basis or we are only able to obtain financing on unfavorable terms.
Our ability to raise capital through equity sales is dependent, in part, on the market price of our common stock, and our failure to meet market expectations with respect to our business, or other factors we do not control, could negatively impact such market price and availability of equity capital.
As with other publicly-traded companies, the availability of equity capital will depend, in part, on the market price of our common stock which, in turn, will depend upon various market conditions and other factors, some of which we cannot control, that may change from time to time including:
| ● | the extent of investor interest; |
| ● | the general reputation of REITs and the attractiveness of their equity securities in comparison to other equity securities, including securities issued by other real estate-based companies; |
| ● | the financial performance of us and our operators; |
| ● | concentrations in our investment portfolio by tenant and facility type; |
| ● | concerns about our tenants’ financial condition due to uncertainty regarding reimbursement from governmental and other third-party payor programs; |
| ● | our credit ratings and analyst reports on us and the REIT industry in general, including recommendations, and our ability to meet our guidance estimates or analysts’ estimates; |
| ● | general economic, global and market conditions, including changes in interest rates on fixed income securities, which may lead prospective purchasers of our common stock to demand a higher annual yield from future distributions; |
| ● | our failure to maintain or increase our dividend, which is dependent, to a large part, on the increase in funds from operations, which in turn depends upon increased revenues from additional investments and rental increases; and |
| ● | other factors such as governmental regulatory action and changes in REIT tax laws, as well as changes in litigation and regulatory proceedings. |
The market value of the equity securities of a REIT is generally based upon the market’s perception of the REIT’s growth potential and its current and potential future earnings and cash distributions. Our failure to meet the market’s expectation with regard to future earnings and cash distributions would likely adversely affect the market price of our common stock and, as a result, the availability of equity capital to us.
We are subject to risks associated with debt financing, including changes in our credit ratings, which could negatively impact our business and limit our ability to make distributions to our stockholders and to repay maturing debt.
The financing required to make future investments and satisfy maturing commitments may be provided by borrowings under our credit facilities, private or public offerings of debt or equity, the assumption of secured indebtedness, mortgage financing on a portion of our owned portfolio or through joint ventures. To the extent we must obtain debt financing from external sources to fund our capital requirements, we cannot guarantee such financing will be available on favorable terms, if at all. In addition, if we are unable to refinance or extend principal payments due at maturity or pay them with proceeds from other capital transactions, our cash flow may not be sufficient to make distributions to our stockholders and repay our maturing debt. Furthermore, if prevailing interest rates, changes in our debt credit ratings or other factors at the time of refinancing result in higher interest rates upon refinancing, the interest expense relating to that refinanced indebtedness would increase, which could reduce our profitability and the amount of dividends we are able to pay. Factors that may affect our credit ratings include, among other things, our financial performance, our success in raising sufficient equity capital, adverse changes in our debt and fixed charge coverage ratios, our capital structure and level of indebtedness and pending or future changes in the regulatory framework applicable to our operators and our industry. Further, additional debt financing increases the amount of our leverage. The degree of leverage could have important consequences to stockholders, including affecting our investment grade ratings and our ability to obtain additional financing in the future, and making us more vulnerable to a downturn in our results of operations or the economy generally.
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The interest rate of our credit facilities, term loan facilities and derivatives contracts are priced using LIBOR and are subject to risks associated with the transition from LIBOR to an alternative reference rate.
London Inter-bank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) is the basic rate of interest used in lending between banks on the London interbank market and is widely used as a reference for setting the interest rate on loans globally. We typically use LIBOR as a reference rate in credit facilities, term loan facilities and derivative contracts. In July 2017, the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) that regulates LIBOR announced that it intends to stop compelling banks to submit rates for the calculation of LIBOR after 2021, and while the transition period for many LIBOR tenors has been extended to June 2023, the U.S. Federal Reserve advised banks to stop new LIBOR issuances by the end of 2021. At this time, no consensus exists as to which reference rate or rates or benchmarks may become acceptable alternatives to LIBOR. The Alternative Reference Rates Committee, a steering committee comprised of U.S. financial market participants, has identified the secured overnight financing rate, or SOFR, as the recommended alternative rate for all LIBOR. At this time, it is impossible to predict whether the SOFR or another reference rate will become an accepted alternative to LIBOR. Any changes in the methods by which LIBOR is determined or regulatory activity related to LIBOR’s phaseout could cause LIBOR to perform differently than in the past or cease to exist. Further, the consequences of these developments, or any alternative reference rate that is adopted, cannot be entirely predicted but could include an increase in the cost of our variable rate borrowings, of which we had $50 million of borrowings outstanding as of December 31, 2021 and $450 million notional value derivative instruments that are indexed to LIBOR. For some instruments, the method of transitioning to an alternative rate may be challenging, as this may require negotiation with the respective counterparty.
We may be subject to additional risks in connection with our acquisitions of long-term care facilities.
We may be subject to additional risks in connection with our acquisitions of long-term care facilities, including but not limited to the following:
| ● | our limited prior business experience with certain of the operators of the facilities we have recently acquired or may acquire in the future; |
| ● | the facilities may underperform due to various factors, including unfavorable terms and conditions of the lease agreements that we assume, disruptions caused by the management of the operators of the facilities or changes in economic conditions impacting the facilities and/or the operators; |
| ● | large acquisitions or investments could place significant additional demands on, and require us to expand, our management, resources and personnel, as well as to adapt our administrative, accounting and operational systems to integrate and manage the long-term care facilities we have acquired or may acquire in a timely manner; |
| ● | diversion of our management’s attention away from other business concerns; |
| ● | exposure to any undisclosed or unknown potential liabilities relating to the facilities; and |
| ● | potential underinsured losses on the facilities. |
We cannot assure you that we will be able to manage our recently acquired facilities, or the future growth in our business, without encountering difficulties or that any such difficulties will not have a material adverse effect on us. Our growth could also increase our capital requirements, which may require us to issue potentially dilutive equity securities and incur additional debt.
Our assets, including our real estate and loans, are subject to impairment charges, and our valuation and reserve estimates are based on assumptions and may be subject to adjustment.
Our asset portfolio primarily consists of real estate and mortgage loans, which are subject to write-downs in value. From time to time, we close facilities and actively market such facilities for sale. To the extent we are unable to sell these properties for our book value, we may be required to take a non-cash impairment charge or loss on the sale, either of which would reduce our net income. In addition, we periodically, but not less than annually, evaluate our real estate investments and other assets for impairment indicators, and we establish general and specific reserves for our issued loans at least quarterly. The quarterly evaluation of our investments for impairment may result in significant fluctuations in our provision for credit losses or real estate impairments from quarter to quarter, impacting our results of operations. Judgments regarding the existence of impairment indicators or loan reserves are based on a number of factors, including market conditions, operator performance and legal structure, and these factors may involve estimates. If we determine that a significant impairment has occurred, we are required to make an adjustment to the net carrying value of the asset, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. Our estimates of loan reserves, and other accounting estimates, are inherently uncertain and may be subject to future adjustment, leading potentially to an increase in reserves.
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Our indebtedness could adversely affect our financial condition.
We have a material amount of indebtedness and we may increase our indebtedness in the future. Our level and type of indebtedness could have important consequences for our stockholders. For example, it could:
| ● | increase our vulnerability to adverse changes in general economic, industry and competitive conditions; |
| ● | limit our ability to borrow additional funds, on satisfactory terms or at all, for working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements, execution of our business plan or other general corporate purposes; |
| ● | increase our cost of borrowing; |
| ● | require us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to make payments on our indebtedness, thereby reducing the availability of our cash flow to fund working capital, capital expenditures and other general corporate purposes; |
| ● | limit our ability to make material acquisitions or take advantage of business opportunities that may arise; |
| ● | limit our ability to make distributions to our stockholders, which may cause us to lose our qualification as a REIT under the Code or to become subject to federal corporate income tax on any REIT taxable income that we do not distribute; |
| ● | expose us to fluctuations in interest rates, to the extent our borrowings bear variable rates of interest; |
| ● | limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the industry in which we operate; and |
| ● | place us at a competitive disadvantage compared to our competitors that have less debt. |
Further, we have the ability to incur substantial additional debt, including secured debt, which could intensify the risks above. In addition, if we are unable to refinance any of our floating rate debt, we would continue to be subject to interest rate risk. The short-term nature of some of our debt also subjects us to the risk that market conditions may be unfavorable or may prevent us from refinancing our debt at or prior to their existing maturities. In addition, our cash flow from operations may not be sufficient to repay all of our outstanding debt as it becomes due, and we may not be able to borrow money, sell assets or otherwise raise funds on acceptable terms, if at all, to refinance our debt.
Covenants in our debt documents limit our operational flexibility, and a covenant breach could materially adversely affect our operations.
The terms of our credit agreements and note indentures require us to comply with a number of customary financial and other covenants that may limit our management’s discretion by restricting our ability to, among other things, incur additional debt, redeem our capital stock, enter into certain transactions with affiliates, pay dividends and make other distributions, make investments and other restricted payments, engage in mergers and consolidations, create liens, sell assets or engage in new lines of business. In addition, our credit facilities require us to maintain compliance with specified financial covenants, including those relating to maximum total leverage, maximum secured leverage, maximum unsecured leverage, minimum fixed charge coverage, minimum consolidated tangible net worth and minimum unsecured interest coverage. Any additional financing we may obtain could contain similar or more restrictive covenants. Our continued ability to incur indebtedness, conduct our operations, and take advantage of business opportunities as they arise is subject to compliance with these financial and other covenants. Breaches of these covenants could result in defaults under the instruments governing the applicable indebtedness, in addition to any other indebtedness cross-defaulted against such instruments. Any such breach could materially adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We are subject to particular risks associated with real estate ownership, which could result in unanticipated losses or expenses.
Our business is subject to many risks that are associated with the ownership of real estate. For example, if our operators do not renew their leases, we may be unable to re-lease the facilities at favorable rental rates, if at all. Other risks that are associated with real estate acquisition and ownership include, without limitation, the following:
| ● | general liability, property and casualty losses, some of which may be uninsured; |
| ● | the inability to purchase or sell our assets rapidly to respond to changing economic conditions, due to the illiquid nature of real estate and the real estate market; |
| ● | leases that are not renewed or are renewed at lower rental amounts at expiration; |
| ● | contingent rent escalators tied to changes in the Consumer Price Index or other parameters; |
| ● | the exercise of purchase options by operators resulting in a reduction of our rental revenue; |
| ● | costs relating to maintenance and repair of our facilities and the need to make expenditures due to changes in governmental regulations, including the Americans with Disabilities Act; |
| ● | environmental hazards created by prior owners or occupants, existing tenants, mortgagors or other persons for which we may be liable; and |
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| ● | acts of God or terrorism affecting our properties. |
Our real estate investments are relatively illiquid.
Real estate investments are relatively illiquid and generally cannot be sold quickly. The real estate market is affected by many factors which are beyond our control, including general economic conditions, availability of financing, interest rates and supply and demand. Additional factors that are specific to our industry also tend to limit our ability to vary our portfolio promptly in response to changes in economic or other conditions. For example, all of our properties are ‘‘special purpose’’ properties that cannot be readily converted into general residential, retail or office use. In addition, transfers of operations of nursing homes and other healthcare-related facilities are subject to extensive regulatory approvals. We cannot predict whether we will be able to sell any property for the price or on the terms set by us or whether any price or other terms offered by a prospective purchaser would be acceptable to us. We also cannot predict the length of time needed to find a willing purchaser and to close the sale of a property, or that we will have funds available to make necessary repairs and improvements to a property held for sale. To the extent we are unable to sell any properties for our book value, we may be required to take a non-cash impairment charge or loss on the sale, either of which would reduce our net income.
We face possible risks and costs associated with severe weather conditions, natural disasters or the physical effects of climate change.
A large number of our properties are located in areas particularly susceptible to revenue loss, cost increase or damage caused by severe weather conditions or natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, fires and floods, as well as the effects of climate change. To the extent that climate change impacts changes in weather patterns, our markets could experience more frequent and severe natural disasters. Operationally, such events could cause a major power outage, leading to a disruption of our operators’ operations or require them to incur additional cost associated with evacuation plans. Over time, any of these conditions could result in increased operator costs, delays in construction, resulting in increased construction costs, or in the inability of our operators to operate our facilities at all. Climate change and severe weather may also have indirect effects on our business by increasing the cost to our operators of, or decreasing the availability to our operators of, property insurance on terms they find acceptable, and by increasing the cost of energy, maintenance, repair of water and/or wind damage, and snow removal at our properties. In the event of a loss in excess of insured limits, we could lose our incremental capital invested in the affected property.
Although Congress has not yet enacted comprehensive federal legislation to address climate change, numerous states and municipalities have adopted laws and policies on climate change and emission reduction targets. Changes in federal, state and local legislation and regulation based on concerns about climate change could result in increased capital expenditures on our existing properties and our new development properties (for example, to improve their energy efficiency and/or resistance to severe weather) without a corresponding increase in revenue, resulting in adverse impacts to our net income. There can be no assurance that climate change and severe weather will not have a material adverse effect on our properties, operations, or business.
As an owner or lender with respect to real property, we may be exposed to possible environmental liabilities.
Under various federal, state and local environmental laws, ordinances and regulations, a current or previous owner of real property or a secured lender may be liable in certain circumstances for the costs of investigation, removal or remediation of certain hazardous or toxic substances at such property, as well as certain other potential related costs, including government fines and damages for injuries to persons and adjacent property. Such laws often impose liability without regard to whether the owner knew of, or was responsible for, the presence or disposal of such substances. As a result, liability may be imposed on the owner in connection with the activities of an operator of the property, and the owner’s liability could exceed the value of the property and/or the assets of the owner. In addition, the presence of such substances, or the failure to properly dispose of or remediate such substances, may adversely affect an operators’ ability to attract additional residents and our ability to sell or rent such property or to borrow using such property as collateral which, in turn, could negatively impact our revenues.
Although our leases and mortgage loans generally require the lessee and the mortgagor to indemnify us for certain environmental liabilities, they may be unable to fulfill their indemnification obligations to us, and the scope of such obligations may be limited. For instance, most of our leases do not require the lessee to indemnify us for environmental liabilities arising before the lessee took possession of the premises.
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The industry in which we operate is highly competitive. Increasing investor interest in our sector and consolidation at the operator level or REIT level could increase competition and reduce our profitability.
Our business is highly competitive and we expect that it may become more competitive in the future. We compete for healthcare facility investments with other healthcare investors, including other REITs, some of which have greater resources and lower costs of capital than we do. Increased competition makes it more challenging for us to identify and successfully capitalize on opportunities that meet our business goals. If we cannot capitalize on our development pipeline, identify and purchase a sufficient quantity of healthcare facilities at favorable prices, or are unable to finance such acquisitions on commercially favorable terms, our business, results of operations and financial condition may be materially adversely affected. In addition, if our cost of capital should increase relative to the cost of capital of our competitors, the spread that we realize on our investments may decline if competitive pressures limit or prevent us from charging higher lease or mortgage rates.
Our charter and bylaws contain significant anti-takeover provisions which could delay, defer or prevent a change in control or other transactions that could provide our stockholders with the opportunity to realize a premium over the then-prevailing market price of our common stock.
Our charter and bylaws contain various procedural and other requirements which could make it difficult for stockholders to effect certain corporate actions. Our Board of Directors (“Board”) has the authority to issue additional shares of preferred stock and to fix the preferences, rights and limitations of the preferred stock without stockholder approval. In addition, our charter contains limitations on the ownership of our capital stock intended to ensure we continue to meet the requirements for qualification as a REIT. For example, our charter, among other restrictions, prohibits the beneficial or constructive ownership (as defined for federal income tax purposes) by any person of more than 9.8% in value or in number of shares of the outstanding shares of any class or series of our capital stock, unless our Board grants an exemption or modifies the ownership limit for such person and certain conditions are satisfied. These provisions could discourage unsolicited acquisition proposals or make it more difficult for a third party to gain control of us, which could adversely affect the market price of our securities and/or result in the delay, deferral or prevention of a change in control or other transactions that could provide our stockholders with the opportunity to realize a premium over the then-prevailing market price of our common stock.
Ownership of property outside the U.S. may subject us to different or greater risks than those associated with our U.S. investments, including currency fluctuations.
We have investments in the U.K., and may from time to time may seek to acquire other properties in the U.K. or otherwise outside the U.S. Although we currently have investments in the U.K., we have limited experience investing in healthcare properties or other real estate-related assets located outside the U.S. International development, investment, ownership and operating activities involve risks that are different from those we face with respect to our U.S. properties and operations. These risks include, but are not limited to, any international currency gain recognized with respect to changes in exchange rates may not qualify under the income tests that we must satisfy annually in order to qualify and maintain our status as a REIT; fluctuations in the exchange rates between USD and the British Pound Sterling (“GBP”), or other foreign currencies in which we may transact in the future, which we may be unable to protect against through hedging; changes in foreign political, regulatory, and economic conditions; challenges in managing international operations; challenges of complying with a variety of foreign laws and regulations, including those relating to real estate, healthcare operations, taxes, employment and legal proceedings; differences in lending practices and the willingness of domestic or foreign lenders to provide financing; regional or country-specific business cycles and economic instability; and changes in applicable laws and regulations in the U.S. that affect foreign operations. In addition, we have limited investing experience in international markets. If we are unable to successfully manage the risks associated with international expansion and operations, our results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected.
On January 31, 2020, the U.K. withdrew from the European Union (“E.U.”), commonly referred to as “Brexit”. Changes in economic conditions in the U.K. relating to Brexit may subject the operators of our facilities in the U.K. to increased risk, including potential disruptions in supply, increases in costs, or difficulty staffing. In addition, the uncertainty related to Brexit has caused foreign exchange rate fluctuations in the past, including the strengthening of the USD relative to the Euro and GBP immediately following the announcement of Brexit, and may continue to do so in the future. Furthermore, Brexit could lead to legal uncertainty or the imposition of additional legal or regulatory requirements on the Company, which could have adverse consequences on our business, financial condition and results of operations. The implementation of, or further developments with respect to, Brexit could further impact foreign exchange rates, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. To date, one of the key effects of Brexit on the U.K. market is increased difficulty recruiting suitably qualified staff members within properties, as historically the E.U. and freedom of movement provided a reliable personnel resource for the U.K. market. The employment pool within the U.K. is further impacted by vaccination requirements for those working in the sector, meaning that those in certain roles who refuse to be vaccinated may not be employed (unless exempt from the requirement).
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Our assets are concentrated in the long-term care industry and face geographic and operator concentration risk.
Our assets are generally not diversified by industry and face risks associated with the long-term care industry. In addition, at December 31, 2021, two operators each represented greater than 10% of our investments, and the three states in which we had our highest concentration of investments were Florida (15%), Texas (10%) and Michigan (6%). As a result, we are subject to increased exposure to adverse conditions affecting these operators and regions, with regional risks including unfavorable Medicaid reimbursements rates for SNFs, downturns in the local economies, local real estate conditions, increased competition or decreased demand for our facilities, regional climate events, and unfavorable legislative or regulatory developments, which could adversely affect our business and results of operations.
Our primary assets are the units of partnership interest in Omega OP and, as a result, we will depend on distributions from Omega OP to pay dividends and expenses.
The Company is a holding company and has no material assets other than units of partnership interest in Omega OP. We intend to cause the partnership to make distributions to its partners, including the Company, in an amount sufficient to allow us to qualify as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes and to pay all of our expenses. To the extent we need funds and the partnership is restricted from making distributions under applicable law or otherwise, or if the partnership is otherwise unable to provide such funds, the failure to make such distributions could materially adversely affect our liquidity and financial condition.
Members of our management and Board are holders of units of partnership interest in Omega OP, and their interests may differ from those of our public stockholders.
Some members of our management and Board hold partnership interest in Omega OP. Those unitholders may have conflicting interests with holders of the Company’s common stock. For example, such unitholders of Omega OP Units may have different tax positions from the Company or holders of our common stock, which could influence their decisions in their capacities as members of management regarding whether and when to dispose of assets, whether and when to incur new or refinance existing indebtedness and how to structure future transactions.
Our investments in joint ventures could be adversely affected by shared decision-making authority, our joint venture partners’ financial condition, and our exposure to potential losses from the actions of our joint venture partners.
As of December 31, 2021, we have ownership interest in one consolidated joint venture and several unconsolidated joint ventures. These joint ventures involve additional risks, including the following:
| ● | We may be unable to take actions that are opposed by our joint venture partners under arrangements that require us to share decision-making authority over major decisions affecting the ownership or operation of the joint venture and any property owned by the joint venture, such as the sale or financing of the property, our ability to sell or transfer our interest in a joint venture or the making of additional capital contributions for the benefit of the property; |
| ● | For joint ventures in which we have a noncontrolling interest, our joint venture partners may take actions that we oppose; |
| ● | Our joint venture partners may become bankrupt or fail to fund their share of required capital contributions, which could delay construction or development of a property or increase our financial commitment to the joint venture; |
| ● | Our joint venture partners may have business interests or goals with respect to a property that conflict with our business interests and goals, including with respect to the timing, terms and strategies for investment, which could increase the likelihood of disputes regarding the ownership, management or disposition of the property; |
| ● | Disagreements with our joint venture partners could result in litigation or arbitration that increases our expenses, distracts our officers and directors, and disrupts the day-to-day operations of the property, including by delaying important decisions until the dispute is resolved; and |
| ● | We may suffer losses resulting from actions taken by our joint venture partners with respect to our joint venture investments. |
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Risks Related to Taxation
Qualifying as a REIT involves highly technical and complex provisions of the Code; failure to qualify as a REIT would subject us to increased taxes and impair our ability to expand our business and make distributions; and complying with REIT requirements may affect our profitability.
We were organized to qualify for taxation as a REIT under Sections 856 through 860 of the Code. See Item 1. Business – Taxation of Omega. Qualification as a REIT involves the application of technical and intricate Code provisions for which there are only limited judicial and administrative interpretations, and which involve the determination of various factual matters and circumstances not entirely within our control. We cannot assure that we will at all times satisfy these rules and tests. Even a technical or inadvertent violation could jeopardize our REIT qualification.
If we were to fail to qualify as a REIT in any taxable year, as a result of a determination that we failed to meet the annual distribution requirement or otherwise, we would be subject to federal corporate income tax, and any applicable alternative minimum tax with respect to each such taxable year for which the statute of limitations remains open, as well certain excise taxes on nonqualified REIT income, or disqualification from treatment as a REIT for the four taxable years following the year during which qualification is lost. This treatment would significantly reduce our net earnings and cash flow because of our additional tax liability for the years involved, which could significantly impact our financial condition. We generally must distribute annually at least 90% of our taxable income to our stockholders to maintain our REIT status. To the extent that we do not distribute all of our net capital gain or do distribute at least 90%, but less than 100% of our “REIT taxable income,” as adjusted, we will be subject to tax thereon at regular ordinary and capital gain corporate tax rates. As a result of all these factors, our failure to maintain our qualification as a REIT could impair our ability to expand our business and raise capital, and would substantially reduce our ability to make distributions to you.
To qualify as a REIT for federal income tax purposes, we must continually satisfy tests concerning, among other things, the nature and diversification of our assets, the sources of our income and the amounts we distribute to our stockholders. Thus, we may be required to liquidate otherwise attractive investments from our portfolio or be unable to pursue investments that would be otherwise advantageous to us, to satisfy the asset and income tests or to qualify under certain statutory relief provisions. We may also be required to make distributions to stockholders at disadvantageous times or when we do not have funds readily available for distribution (e.g., if we have assets which generate mismatches between taxable income and available cash). Having to comply with the distribution requirement could cause us to: (i) sell assets in adverse market conditions; (ii) borrow on unfavorable terms; or (iii) distribute amounts that would otherwise be invested in future acquisitions, capital expenditures or repayment of debt. As a result, satisfying the REIT requirements could have an adverse effect on our business results and profitability.
There is a risk of changes in the tax law applicable to REITs.
The Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Treasury Department and Congress frequently review U.S. federal income tax legislation, regulations and other guidance. We cannot predict whether, when or to what extent new U.S. federal tax laws, regulations, interpretations or rulings will be adopted. Any legislative action may prospectively or retroactively modify our tax treatment and, therefore, may adversely affect taxation of us, our properties, or our shareholders.
Risks Related to Our Stock and Capital Structure
Our issuance of additional capital stock, warrants or debt securities, whether or not convertible, may reduce the market price for our outstanding securities, including our common stock, and dilute the ownership interests of existing stockholders, and we may issue securities with greater dividend, liquidation and other rights than our common stock.
We cannot predict the effect, if any, that future sales of our capital stock, warrants or debt securities, or the availability of our securities for future sale, will have on the market price of our securities, including our common stock. Sales of substantial amounts of our common stock or preferred shares, warrants or debt securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for common stock in the public market, or the perception that such sales might occur, could negatively impact the market price of our stock and the terms upon which we may obtain additional equity financing in the future. Our Board has the authority to designate and issue preferred stock that may have dividend, liquidation and other rights that are senior to those of our common stock.
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Any debt securities, preferred shares, warrants or other rights to acquire shares or convertible or exchangeable securities that we issue in the future may have some rights, preferences and privileges more favorable than those of our common stock and may result in dilution to owners of our common stock. Holders of our common stock are not entitled to preemptive rights or other protections against dilution. Our preferred shares, if issued, could have a preference on liquidating distributions or a preference on dividend payments that could limit our ability pay dividends or other distributions to the holders of our common stock. Because our decision to issue securities in any future offering will depend on market conditions and other factors beyond our control, we cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing or nature of our future offerings. Thus, our stockholders bear the risk that our future offerings could reduce the per share trading price of our common stock and dilute their interest in us.
General Risk Factors
Our success depends in part on our ability to retain key personnel and our ability to attract or retain other qualified personnel.
Our future performance depends to a significant degree upon the continued contributions of our executive management team and other key employees, the loss of whom could have an adverse impact on our operations. Although we have entered into employment agreements with the members of our executive management team, these agreements may not assure their continued service. In addition, our failure to successfully attract, hire, retain and train the people we need may impede our ability to implement our business strategy.
We rely on information technology in our operations, and any